A Champion's Rise
by TheIceRaven
Summary: Ash's friends turn on him and say he's bad luck luck. He refuses to leave town so they force him to flea by burning his house and killing Delia in the flames flames. Ash and Pikachu leave with the other Pokemon and leave, never to be seen again again. Until one day they do and they're here to win the Sinnoh League! Ash/Ursula pairing
1. Chapter 1: Reliving the Betrayal

A CHAMPIONS RISE

CHAPTER ONE: RELIVING THE BETRAYAL

On peak of the mysterious Mt. Silver, a man stood on the outside of a deep cave, looking out at the world below. He had black hair, and was just over 6' and he stood with a little yellow Pokemon on his right shoulder. This creature was a Pikachu and it had bright yellow fur, a lightening shaped tail and black tips on its ears. The man was wearing a blue jacket with a black undershirt and black jeans with a hat similar to the Aura Guardians. He wore a long cloak off his back hiding most of his face.

They were not alone however because by his side was a little girl up to the man's chest with blonde hair and a purple dress. She too was looking out at the world off the mountain for a while until she noticed the man had been completely silent the entire time. She turned her eyes to the man and found he was looking intently at the horizon. Seeing this she switched her gaze to the horizon and back to the man again when she couldn't see anything interesting before speaking.

"What are we looking at?" The girl asks, but before the man answers a purple bullet zips up to them both and onto the man's other shoulder, joining its trainer in its glazed over look at the world.

The man smiles a little scratching the newcomer under the chin. This Pokemon was an Aipom. It had bright purple fur, with a cream colored face and feet. Other than its large ears, the strange thing was its long tail with a fist matching its face in color. After the man decides to stop scratching Aipom he answers the girl.

"The smoke, Sarah. There's a forest fire somewhere." The man answered. At the mention of fire the Pikachu and Aipom's gaze hardened.

Not only that but a herd of Pokemon came from the mouth of the cave. Among them were a Charizard, Sceptile, Feraligatr, Venusaur, Blastoise, Swellow, Crawdaunt, Floatzel, Samurott, Serperior, Krookodile, Lucario, Espeon, Houndoom and Salamence. These were all the man's Pokemon and they all looked incredibly powerful. They came out of the cave to comfort the man at the mention of 'fire'. The man smiled at his Pokemon's loyalty and turned to the girl, Sarah, who was getting ready to speak.

"You haven't forgotten anything about that day, have you?" Sarah said with a sigh, knowing now exactly why the man had his gaze upon the fire, which was barely noticeable now, in the distance.

"Not a single detail. No matter how hard I try. They can't forget much either, am I right?" The man responded and asked his Pokemon. The Pikachu, Charizard, Sceptile, Feraligatr, Venusaur, Blastoise, Swellow, Crawdaunt, Floatzel, Samurott, Serperior and Krookodile nodded, showing they remembered too.

The other Pokemon all knew the story of that day, they just weren't there when it happened. They were found and caught later, but they all wished they could have been there to help their master at his weakest point, like he had for most of them. Sarah sighed and said,

"I know it's just sometimes I think we should go back. Prove them wrong or maybe get them back. What do you think?" She asked the man, who sighed and replied,

"Revenge will not make things right. While beating them might help it will not make me forget. Nothing will ever make me forget." He said, still staring off the mountain.

"I know. You've told me the stories and after hearing them I feel like I was there too. I'm glad I wasn't though, then you would've had to save me too, I would've just caused more trouble." Sarah said looking at her feet. The man sighed and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Sarah, everyday since _that, _I felt an emptiness. But after I met you and took you in a year later, I started to feel better. Other than my Pokemon, you are the only thing I have left and know if you were there, you would have been more help than you think. Don't ever think I regret adopting you as a sister." The man said strongly.

Sarah smiled happily and wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him from the side for a little bit. After a few seconds she let go and spoke, softer this time.

"Sometimes I think you're more like my family than my old one. Thanks Ash." Sarah said, turning her eyes back to the distance.

The man, now known as Ash, smiled and turned to his Pokemon for a second and then looked out at the horizon again, but this time the flames and smoke were completely gone and the only sign of a fire was the black wooded area where the fire used to be. Ash sighed and looked back at the cave and his Pokemon.

This cave had been his home for the past 4 years, ever since he was 14 and on his own with Sarah who was 10 at the time. Their Pokemon had been with them most of the time when they weren't in the back of the mountain training. Ash preferred to keep his Pokemon out and about, alert and ready while Sarah kept her Pokemon in there balls most of the time. After looking over his Pokemon he was again reminded of that day.

That one day he wished he could forget. But he couldn't. Too much happened that day to even consider it.

_FLASHBACK TIME_

_Ash and Pikachu had just come home from running an errand for Prof. Oak. He had to go to Viridian City to pick up a Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle for a new batch of starting trainers who start tomorrow. _

_After leaving the lab, he was attacked with a Leaf Storm. His first thoughts were Jessie and James but he was surprised when he turned and saw his friends from his travels. There stood Brock, Misty, May, Max, Dawn, Iris and Cilan but what really surprised him and Pikachu was Trip and his Serperior standing in front of them all, grinning for some reason. Ash already didn't like it. _

"_What's going on?" Ash asked uncertain. Pikachu also tilted his head to the side from Ash's shoulder, expressing his confusion and curiosity also. Like Ash, he had a bad feeling. _

"_We decided that you're bad luck." Trip said for everyone, and before Ash could question/protest further Trip spoke again, "Notice how all the legendries attack where you're at. They cause trouble where you're at. Rocket, Aqua, Magma, Galactic and Plasma all attacked and stole and operated in places you were in. _

_Face it, you're nothing but a trouble magnet." He finished strongly._

_Ash opened his mouth to speak up for himself but Misty cut him off._

"_We don't want to hear excuses, we want to hear you say you'll leave and not come back. As long as you're here there will always be trouble. Just go." She said angrily._

"_Just because you don't want me here doesn't mean I'm leaving. I live here and you don't, so if you don't want to be around me fine, but I'm not leaving my home. You can all just go away." Ash said, as he and Pikachu walked back to their house._

_Pikachu was mad, how dare they accuse them of being 'trouble magnets'? They might as well have stabbed him in the back. After all the help he gave them, they just shun them? That isn't right. _

_Like Pikachu, Ash was frustrated. He couldn't believe his friends bought Trip's stupid speech and turned on him. Ash decided to forget it and just go to sleep. He just hoped they would leave Pallet like he suggested and not talk to him again. _

_He couldn't believe how wrong he was. _

_Later that night Ash woke up at 3am to the smell of smoke. After he opened his eyes he saw blazing flames spreading around him and Pikachu. Ash and Pikachu hopped out the window for his bedroom, and when they got outside, they saw Trip and Ash's friends standing there with Blaziken, Darmanitan, Quilava and Dragonite spitting flames onto the house. _

_Ash and Pikachu gasped and ran back into the house, looking for his mother who Ash had noticed hadn't gotten out. _

_After getting back into the house, they went straight to Delia's room. After they broke the door down they looked straight at the bed and what they saw. There, on the bed was Ash's mother, Delia Ketchum, lying there, burned, still and lifeless. _

_Both of them would have broke down right then and there if they hadn't remembered they were inside a burning building. Ash and Pikachu, after realizing they couldn't help Delia, ran outside on the side of the house Trip and the others weren't on. Ash and Pikachu went straight for Oak's._

_After reaching the ranch undetected by Trip and the others, Oak, Gary or Tracy, Ash called all the Pokemon at the Lab to come to him. However only a few came. _

_Ash looked at Sceptile for an answer. Sceptile just frowned and pointed over at the end of the corral, shaking his head in disapproval at their behavior. When Ash looked he saw all his Pokemon except Pikachu, Sceptile, Swellow, Totodile, Oshawott, Snivy, Krookodile, Buizel and Bulbasaur, standing over there glaring at him._

_Ash knew what happened. They all believed Trip's loony idea. Ash sighed, knowing he couldn't force their choice so he collected the Pokeballs of his remaining loyal Pokemon and left Pallet. Forever. _

_Along the way to the port Ash got Squirtle back before heading to Johto. Also in Johto Charizard returned to Ash. _

_FLASHBACK TIME END_

A week after the fire, Ash and Pikachu were already in Hoenn and saw the fire on the news channel. What shocked him most was they declared him dead, as nobody could find his body and nobody saw him escape. This was perfectly fine with the duo, as everyone would leave them alone. That's exactly what they wanted after being turned on by their best friends.

Sarah frowned, knowing Ash was reliving the whole experience in his mind.

Before anybody could say anything more, a woman walked out of the cave entrance. She was up to Ash's shoulders and she wore a white jacket with a pink undershirt and blue jeans. She had yellow shoes on and long socks. The most noticeable trait was her large pink hair worn in loops.

"I saw all the Pokemon come out, is something wrong?" She questioned them. Sarah answered before Ash could.

"Ursula we're fine, just watching the world." Sarah said, watching Ash carefully, knowing his trip down memory lane affected him more than he showed.

Ursula smiled. That was Ash's favorite thing to do with his sister.

"Alright, come eat dinner then. I just finished it." Ursula said, pointing to a cabin next to the cave.

Ash smiled at his wife. Yes, his wife. They met again within the year of Ash's disappearance and married 2 years ago.

"We're coming. Guys, go eat out back okay?" Ash told his Pokemon, who went out back the second the words left his mouth. All of them left except Pikachu, Aipom, Houndoom and Lucario who stayed still, waiting for Ash to come.

"Sarah you can eat with Ursula now. I'll be in soon, I just have some things to think over." He said nodding to Sarah as she walked to Ursula's side as the 2 ladies walked into the cabin.

"_Ash, what are you thinkin'?" _Pikachu questioned from his shoulder. Ash could use his aura to figure out what all his Pokemon were saying.

"_Yea, tell us." _Aipom added from the other shoulder. Houndoom and Lucario nodded, wanting to know what was troubling Ash.

"Remember how we said we'd never go back?" They nodded. "Know how Sarah and Ursula say we should go back?" They nodded. "You know, its time for the Sinnoh League again?" They nodded. "You know Max, Trip and Misty are competing?" They shook their heads. "Well they are. Revenge solves nothing, but how fun would to be to see the look on their faces when they see us, getting the trophy?" They grinned and nodded.

"Let's tell them. Tomorrow sound good? I don't know when it starts but I can still use my old badges." They nodded in approval of Ash's plan and then Ash took the 4 Pokemon to the cabin to eat dinner.

As they walked in, Ash sat in one of the 2 empty chairs in the kitchen. He sat with Ursula on his left and Sarah across from him as Pikachu and Aipom sat the table. Houndoom sat by a food bowl and Lucario sat in the other chair.

"Did you think about what you needed too?" Sarah asked, concerned. Ash nodded.

"Yea, and I have a to tell you both something important. You both want to go back right?" He asked them, double-checking. They both nodded, now really curious.

"How's tomorrow afternoon?" He asked suddenly. He was then tackled into 2 hugs at the same time and all he herd was muffles 'thank you' s. He smiled and let them finish their hugging attack then spoke.

"Who takes Salamence while I take Charizard?" Ash asked knowing Charizard wouldn't fly for anyone unless Ash was also flying with him.

"I'll take Salamence with Sarah and you and Pikachu go on Charizard." Ursula suggested.

Houndoom, Lucario and Aipom groaned knowing they had to be put back in their Pokeballs until they got to Sinnoh. They all hated them and refused anything to go with them, almost as much as Pikachu.

"Aipom you should be able to stay out. Houndoom and Lucario I promise I'll let you out the second we land." Ash informed them.

Aipom cheered and hi-fived Pikachu who was excited at his best Pokemon friend staying with him for the ride. While the other 2 groaned but nodded, knowing it was for a good reason.

"Alright guys, everyone dig in because we have to pack. We leave tomorrow at noon." Ash spoke again as everyone happily dug into his or her food, wanting to show a certain group of people what's what.

On a ferry heading to the Sinnoh region was a group of 8 kids getting ready for the Sinnoh League.

An squinty eyed man, a redheaded girl, a bandana wearing girl, a kid with glasses, an unusually perky blunette girl, a big haired hair, a man dressed like a waiter and a kid with a camera on his neck. What an odd bunch.

"Hey Trip, ready for the Sinnoh League?" The blunette asked the camera guy.

"You bet Dawn. And I'm going to win." Trip said confidently.

"What about Misty and Max?" The waiter man asked and the redhead and glasses kid nodded.

"What about them Cilan, Trip will probably win." Dawn said to Cilan.

"No, I'm going to win! Right Brock?" asked Max to the squinty eye man, who nodded.

"Too bad you aren't participating though, Iris. You would have done well." The bandana girl stated.

"Maybe, but too late now." Iris replied.

"Know who wouldn't have won?" Misty asked, changing the subject. Everyone knew whom she was talking about.

Ever since they 'killed' Ash and Delia, Misty Dawn Iris Cilan and Trip were the only ones who didn't feel bad. Trip was proud to be rid of him and Misty and Dawn agreed because they were crushing over him. Iris and Cilan just left and came back time-to-time not saying anything. Nobody knew how they felt but each other and they only spoke about it to one another.

Trip always said it was 'the perfect crime' because even Officer Jenny and her police force couldn't figure out what happened to the Ketchum house. Only they knew what happened and nobody would talk. Although everyone, including them, wondered what happened to Ash and Pikachu themselves. They were in the house that night, and gone the next morning but nobody saw them leave town. Weird?

There were all kinds of legends and stories and sightings of the pair all over the Pokemon world. Some say they are watching over the world with Arceus (due to their involvement with Legends). Others say they still live today but under different profiles. One of the most popular is Ash and Pikachu showing up in places only when someone needs saving or when evil rises. People even reported sightings of the duo in places like Altomare, Alamos Town, Dewford Islands, Desert Resort (Unova) and more but nobody has confirmed a thing. The most confusing part is the fact the only a few of Ash's Pokemon disappeared. Some say they left looking for him and Pikachu. Others say poachers targeted them; they were some of his best Pokemon after all. People even saw they saw some of them, like his Charizard flying in the sky, or his Sceptile jumping through the forest; almost unseen. But again, none were proven true or false. It just seemed like nobody was in the right place at the right time anymore.

The Pokemon that remained at the lab felt almost no guilt about their former master, even going as far as becoming the Pokemon of his ex-friends. Heracross, Snorlax and Infernape trained under Trip now. Some of them such as, Glalie and Palpitoad trained with May hoping to help find him, regretting their decision like she did. Anybody his Pokemon went too were extremely grateful to have such powerful Pokemon under their command now and all the Pokemon who hadn't left with Ash that day found new trainers.

Only Brock, May and Max regret letting Trip turn them on Ash. Everyday they talk to each other and just hope that the one person who could always make everything better, would come back and make things better again.

"Who, Misty?" May asked, slightly annoyed at her.

"Ketchum." She answered plainly. Everyone but laughs hard but Brock, May and Max who only chuckled slightly to avoid suspicion.

"Yea. I still say that was the best move on our part." Dawn whispered.

All but the Brock and the Siblings nodded, saying they were happy with the Kanto pair gone. Not only them but Professor Oak and Gary also missed him. They were both there the next morning and were destroyed inside, learning they were both gone. In fact, Oak was in charge of the funerals. Although not there, Ash and Pikachu got stones side-by-side with Delia in the lot across from the house. The Oak's looked for the boy's non-stop for 2 weeks until, as Trip put it, 'facing the music'.

Despite all the legends and rumors going around, Brock the siblings and the Oak's knew the chance of living alone for so long was slim, but they never gave up. He wouldn't on them right? It's been 4 years and Brock, the siblings and the Oak's have been waiting for him to compete in a League of a gym or a tournament but nothing happened. Not the Kanto, Johto or Hoenn Leagues. No recent gym files or tournament registrations. No Pokedex GPS tracker. No recent purchases or changes in his trainer page. It was like the pair just fell off the face of the earth.

Just then the ferry pulled into Lily of the Valley Island, the place of the Sinnoh League, once again. They all walked ashore carrying their things looking around for familiar people.

They spotted only Tobias, who beat Ash in the same tournament before. They found Morrison, Ash's friend from Hoenn, who was deeply saddened by Ash's disappearance. Iris and Cilan recognized Burgundy and went up to her, and turns out she too was looking for Ash. The truth about what happened to Ash almost came out of Dawn when she was talking to Zoey and although suspicious she dropped it. Barry was trying to 'fine' people who didn't know who or where Ash was the entire time they saw him at the hotel lobby, same old Barry.

They all got to their suite, with enough rooms for the 8 of them and settled down in their rooms to go to bed for the night. Little did they know their last thoughts of the day were all on a certain raven-hair trainer and a yellow companion?

'Wait until the time is right.' That's what Oak said, but only Brock, May, Max and Gary really waited. The others completely faked caring and being mournful. Even though they didn't feel guilty that didn't mean they didn't THINK he was coming back, and that thought scared them. A lot.

They would all just have to wait and see.

**DON'T OWN ANYTHING FROM THE POKEMON SERIES. CHECK OUT MY OTHER STORIES TOO!**

**SO, HOW THIS? DIFFERENT RIGHT? A LITTLE DARKER THAN MY LAST BETRAYAL FIC, BUT IT'S STILL GOOD, RIGHT? I LIKE WRITING ABOUT ASH MORE THAN HIS FRIENDS BUT I FELT LIKE I SHOULD AT LEAST TRY GOING TO A DIFFERENT PRESPECTIVE. **

**I DON'T KNOW WHEN I'LL GET BACK TO THIS. BETWEEN THIS, MY ASH x GEORGIA STORY AND SCHOOL STARTING AGAIN I WON'T UPDATE AS MUCH BUT I PROMISE I WON'T GO ON HATIUS OR JUST STOP FOR ANY REASON. **

**SAME AS ALWAYS, DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW AND IT'S OK TO CRITICIZE. NOT SURE IF YOU PURPOSEFULLY DON'T CRITICIZE TO SPARE MY FEELINGS OR I'M REALLY THAT GOOD. LEANING MORE TOWARDS THE FIRST BECAUSE I'M NOT ALL THAT GOOD.**


	2. Chapter 2: Two Sides Divided

A CHAMPIONS RISE

CHAPTER TWO: TWO SIDES DIVIDED

Ash, Ursula and Sarah were all standing on the cliff of Mt. Sliver with their backpacks on. Pikachu suddenly came running out of the cave with Aipom, Houndoom and Lucario in tow. Ash smiled at the last 4 Pokemon that were out of their Pokeballs.

"Okay, I think the only thing we have left to do is get you in your balls. But, I think you can all stay out if we do this right." Ash said and all the Pokemon grinned, as they hated being in Pokeballs.

"Ursula, you and Sarah ride on Salamence." Ash continued, as his wife and Sister climbed on the blue dragon, with Ursula in front and Sarah sitting right behind her, holding onto her.

"Now, Lucario you sit behind Sarah. Houndoom, you lie down on Charizard's back. Then we get on like this." Ash said as he climbed onto Charizard with Pikachu and Aipom on his shoulders and Houndoom lying behind him.

"Alright, now is everybody ready?" Ash asked as everyone was in his or her spots.

"Ready over here." Ursula answered for her and Sarah.

"_As I'll ever be." _Pikachu said with Aipom nodding.

"_Master I think we are ready to go."_ Lucario said from Salamence. Houndoom barked to show he was ready too.

Last but not least Salamence and Charizard roared in agreement, ready to take flight. Ash nodded and said,

"Charizard, Salamence let's fly!" And with those words both mighty dragon's flapped their wings and took to the skies flying to the Sinnoh Region.

"_Ash, thanks for not putting me in my Pokeball, I hate going in there."_ Houndoom said, not lifting its head.

"No problem buddy." Ash said, petting Houndoom.

"When do you think we'll get there?" Sarah asked Ash.

"Well, I'm going to take a detour to Hoenn. I want to pick up a Pokemon I met there last year. I want you ladies to go with Salamence to the Lily of the Valley Island and get my Pokemon." Ash said mysteriously.

"What old friend in Hoenn?" Ursula asked,

"What Pokemon are at Lily of the Valley?" Sarah questioned.

Ash chuckled at their curiosity before answering.

"In due time for your first question. For your second question all my old Pokemon are at the Valley with the people they left with."

"I thought they left you?" Sarah asked confused.

"That was an act in case anyone was watching. They are all still loyal to me, without question. Here's how that happened,"

_FLASHBACK TIME_

_Ash and Pikachu had just hopped the fence into the ranch behind Oak's Lab to meet up with his Pokemon in the wooded area._

"_I take it you all heard Trip's speech earlier?" They nodded. "Well they just attacked us. Mom is-mom is go-. Mom is gone. They want me gone too. Nobody can know I was here. I was going to take you all and run, but I have a better idea. If I take all of you, people will know I'm alive and gone, so only some of you can come."_

_They all groaned immeadilty. Ash sighed; he knew this was going to be hard._

"_I promise one day we'll all be together again, but not until the time is right. If you all come, they'll suspect something and try again. Do we have any volunteers to stay here?" Ash asked, waiting for them all to tackle him, not wanting to be left behind. Instead, slowly hands, vines and tails were raised. _

_Ash nodded._

"_Okay, you all will stay here, and you guys will come with me. We'll be apart for a while, but not forever. I promise." Ash said, petting all his Pokemon, before leaving the ranch secretly and re-entering in the open. Then he collected his selected Pokemon and vanished. _

_FLASHBACK TIME END_

"There's the real story. Better than it was originally I guess. When you get there, have Salamence roar for them and they'll all come to you, releasing themselves permanently from whoever their trainer now." Ash finished.

"You have the most complicated plans Ash, but alright." Ursula agreed, laughing a little.

"From here on out, you 2 are on your own until I reach Sinnoh. Just let Salamence take you; he knows where he's going. I'll be there as soon as I can. Take care of yourselves, Charizard, Hoenn." Ash said, as he petted Charizard and the fire dragon rocketed off in another direction.

"Bye Ash, see you there!" Sarah yelled after him, while Ursula waved until he was out of view.

"We better get to Sinnoh now. Salamence, do you know where-" Ursula started but was cut off with a roar and Salamence speeding in the direction opposite Ash.

_Original Pokemon theme music Plays_

_Now I am the very best_

_(Ash and Pikachu running through a field)_

_Better than I ever was_

_(Charizard and Salamence racing in the air)_

_Now I have, only one last test_

_(Ash, Pikachu & Aipom standing in the trainer box on battlefield with Lucario and Houndoom on field)_

_And I am almost there_

_(Lucario and Houndoom battling a Gallade and Vaporeon)_

_I have traveled all over the lands_

_(Charizard flying Ash, Pikachu & Aipom over Pallet, Mt. Silver and Victory Road (Hoenn))_

_Now with the help of my guide_

_(Ash & Pikachu following a glowing path Arceus showed them)_

_I better understand_

_(Ash & Pikachu bow to Arceus)_

_The rules we must abide _

_(Sceptile taking out a Poacher's Scizor)_

_CHORUS_

_Pokemon_

_(Ash & Pikachu running out of Pallet with smoke behind them)_

_It's just you and me_

_(Ursula, Sarah, Houndoom, Lucario & Aipom waiting on top for Ash & Pikachu, hiking the mountain)_

_It's sort of my destiny_

_(Ash & Pikachu receiving a trophy from Cynthia)_

_Pokemon!_

_(Oak, Gary, Brock, May and Max looking at Ash & Pikachu's gravestones)_

_We're all best friends_

_(Ash & Pikachu with Ursula & Sarah)(Aipom, Lucario, Houndoom and Charizard gathered around)_

_And we see what's around the bends_

_(Ash & Pikachu turn a corner and Aipom tackles them down)_

_Pokemon!_

_(Charizard, Sceptile and Feraligatr in 3-way battle)_

_After the things we've been through_

_(Ash & Pikachu save Misty & Brock)(Ash & Pikachu save May & Max)(Ash & Pikachu save Dawn, Iris & Cilan)_

_I know what I have to do_

_(Ash & Pikachu save traitors from Poacher)_

_Can't believe the things I do for you_

_(Ash & Pikachu fight Poacher while Ursula, Sarah and traitors watch from behind)_

_Pokemon!_

_(Brock, May & Max training with Ash)_

_We've been together through it all_

_(Ash and Pikachu split an apple)_

_We've faced a lot on the way_

_(Ash and Pikachu face Giovanni and Persian)_

_Along our own pace_

_(Ash, Pikachu and Aipom walking through the woods)_

_It's a new fight everyday,_

_(Sceptile fighting Blaziken)(Charizard fighting Flygon)(Feraligatr fighting Krookodile)_

_Inside our new place_

_(Ash and Pikachu in Altomare, Dewford Islands, Desert Resort and Battle Pyramid)_

_Now we're here to win the fight,_

_(Ash and Pikachu fighting Trip and Serperior)_

_Because we're the perfect team_

_(Ash & Ursula)(Pikachu & Aipom)_

_And we always to what is right_

_(Ash and Pikachu healing Lucario)_

_So now, we will achieve our dream_

_(Ash and Pikachu waving to a crowd of people)_

"Sarah, wake up, we're here." Ursula said, shaking Sarah awake as Salamence landed in front of the Pokemon center. Lucario was the first to hop off, and he helped Ursula off too.

"Already? Fine. Lets go." Sarah complained as she hopped off Salamence and started to walk to the Pokemon Center.

"Wait, lets call Ash's Pokemon, he said as soon as we get here." Ursula said as she stopped Sarah. Sarah just nodded to Ursula. Ursula nodded to Salamence and Salamence turned to his right and started to nod before realizing Ash wasn't here.

After recovering, Salamence let out a roar that would put Dialga and Palkia to shame. Out of the Pokemon center came, Glalie, Seismetoad, Meganium, Infernape, Snorlax, Heracross, Kingler, Tauros, Pidgeot, Primeape, Muk, Donphan, Noctowl, Typloshion, Torkoal, Torterra, Staraptor, Garchomp, Gliscor, Emboar, Unfezant, Gigilith, Leavanny and Scrafty, all with Pokeballs around their necks.

"Wow. He wasn't kidding about all his Pokemon coming was he?" Ursula said as she finished returning all the Pokemon to the Pokeballs around their necks, so they were Ash's again.

"Don't think so." Sarah said, putting the Pokeballs in an empty backpack. Lucario sensed something and looked at the Center, as if expecting something to happen.

"So, Ketchum's finally back. About time." Said a new, gruff voice coming out of the center.

"Uncle Paul, is that you? How did you know we were here?" Sarah whispered the last part. Paul smirked,

"I heard Salamence He isn't exactly quiet you know. Besides you know that most of his Pokemon came with me to avoid Trip. Since we because friends they warmed up to me." Paul responded.

"Good to see you again. Thanks for watching the Pokemon. They all missed him didn't they?" Sarah asked, petting Salamence.

"You both too. Been what, a year? And no problem, it was my pleasure. These guys won me a lot of battles and got me some new Pokemon too. Not a day went by when I regretted helping them or him. Not a day went by when they didn't want him back either. As loyal and respectful they were of me, they prefer him." Paul answered honestly.

Before anybody could say anything else, a new voice was heard from inside the Center again.

"Who are you people and what's with the ruckus! People are trying to sleep!" Dawn said, as she and her friends emerged from the doors.

"Who cares about that, what happened to our Pokemon?" Trip asked expectedly, like they would tell him.

"Sorry about your beauty sleep princess, but we don't know anything about your Pokemon." Sarah said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Sure you don't. We can do this the easy way, or the hard way." Trip said, pulling off a Pokeball as Misty and Dawn mimicked him.

"They said they don't know. What part didn't you understand?" Paul asked them, picking up for his friends family.

"Serperior, Leaf Storm!" Trip yelled, as his grass snake came out and shot spinning leaves.

"Mamoswine, Ice Shard!" Dawn called, as her mammoth materialized and shot an orb of ice.

"Gyrados, Flamethrower!" Misty ordered, as her sea dragon appeared and sent a torrent of flames out.

Before Ursula, Sarah or Paul could do anything, a new voice was heard. Except this time, everyone but Ursula, Sarah and Paul stopped in their tracks.

"Dragons Cannon!" The voice yelled, and out of the sky 2 beams or blue and red energy were fired. One held off the 3 attacks, and the other struck the 3 Pokemon, leaving them all fainted.

They all looked up to see a Charizard carrying a man with a Pikachu on his right shoulder, and an Aipom on his left, and a Flygon with a Houndoom on it's back, growling at them all.

"What do you think you were doing to my family?" The man said in a voice that made the traitors take a step back, with their Pokemon returned.

"Nothing sir, they-" Started Cilan but he was interrupted.

"We, nothing. They accused up of knowing something about missing Pokemon and we just got here 5 minutes ago." Sarah corrected.

"I'm sure there's just been a misunderstanding. I assure you, we are not thieves." The man that Sarah, Ursula and Paul knew as Ash, said.

Not wanting to get on his bad side, Trip and his friends went back inside. Ash smirked and turned to Sarah and Ursula.

"Have them all?" He asked and they nodded. "Good. Charizard, Salamence, Flygon return." He told his 3 dragons as they disappeared in a flash of red light. Ash then turned to Paul.

"Good to see you again. Been too long." He said, as he and Paul shook hands and rested their elbows on each other's shoulders.

"Way too long. Pikachu, Aipom, Houndoom, Lucario. You guys look guys as strong as ever. Still hate Pokeballs I see." Paul noticed while petting Houndoom.

The 4 Pokemon grinned at the compliment and shook their heads at the mention of the awful spheres.

The 4 trainers laughed at the Pokemon's expense. Before Paul spoke up.

"I got the 4 of us a room. Figured when you called and said you would be here, it should be my treat. Think of it as payback for not helping you when you needed it." Paul said, feeling guilty about not being there for Ash.

"I told you, you were plenty of help. But if you insist on treating..." Ash started as both he, Paul and Pikachu started laughing.

"Well, lets go." Ursula said as she took her backpack with her and Sarah's clothes inside.

Sarah followed with the backpack containing all the Pokeballs of the Pokemon they just got back.

Ash and Paul followed with the 4 Pokemon trailing behind, as they all went to room 64 to sleep.

"There's a room over there with a queen bed and a twin bed. You can sleep there. I sleep in the room with the 1 king size bed." Paul said with a smirk as he took his room.

Ash chuckled as he watched Ursula and Sarah walk into the room. He turned to see Lucario laying down on the sofa, ready for bed. Ash led Houndoom to his bedroom and saw his 'sister' asleep in bed. He walked over and kissed her forehead and whispered a goodnight to her.

He got into bed next to Ursula as he watched Houndoom plant himself at the foot of the bed on the floor, as Pikachu and Aipom leaned against each other at the bottom of the bed, already asleep.

The couple laughed as Ash turned to Ursula.

"We're finally back. I just hope this was a good idea." Ash said worriedly.

"We'll be fine. Besides if anything happens you and Paul are the best trainers I know. Nobody could top either one of you except each other. Now stop worrying and go to sleep." Ursula commanded as she leaned into him and pressed her lips on his.

Ash smiled and returned the kiss, using his arm to pull her closer with no resistance on her side. She smiled and pulled away as she sighed contently before she leaned her head on his chest, falling into a deep sleep.

Ash smiled at his wife. She was always right, as he was worrying too much. She was right about the fact that he and Paul could tackle a lot alone, but together they were next to impossible to defeat.

This was because he and Paul trained together for a while. After Ash and Sarah ran into him one night, they became inseparable. Until Paul's brother passed. Reggie's death hurt Paul more than he though it would but afterwards Paul did less and less, trying to accept that his brother wasn't coming back.

Although they saw him less, it didn't affect their bond. Ash and Paul might as well be brothers by now, and since Sarah sees Ash more of a father than anything, she saw Paul as an uncle rather than a friend.

Thinking about the good times with him, Sarah and Paul were before he met his wife. When he and Sarah left Sinnoh for Hoenn, they found her doing a contest in Pacifilog Town. After going out to dinner, she found out what happened. She refused to leave until Ash agreed to let her come on his new journey. From then on, he Ursula Sarah and occasionally Paul trained hard to get their Pokemon the best of their species.

Thinking about the past was tiring. Ash thought to himself, as he too let sleep overcome him.

Ash opened his eyes what felt like 15 minutes later. But instead of being in their bedroom him and Pikachu were floating in the Hall of Origins before Arceus.

"Arceus, what can we do for you today?" Ash questioned as he and Pikachu bowed.

"_Nothing, right now. But I am sending you both this message to protect you. My Chosen and my Chosen Pokemon, there is danger lurking around. The Knight of Darkness is upon us." _Arceus warned as Ash and Pikachu exchanged worried glances.

"You mean that Poacher that ran free for almost 30 years? He's back?" Ash asked, worried for the safety of his family.

"_Yes. He escaped from the Jenny in Viridian City last week. I fear he seeks revenge on his imprisoner. That would be you two. I advise you keep your guard up and not show Mewtwo to anyone for a while, unless it's an emergency or I say otherwise." _Arceus said, continuing his warning.

"Okay, his Pokeball is in my bag but he should be coming back from Johto by tomorrow night. I will keep him safe." Ash said as Pikachu nodded.

"_It is not him I worry for. The two of you might be in danger, as well as everyone near you. I advise you to be careful and trust your instincts on who and who not to convers with." _Arceus said, as he gave his last bit of advice.

"Of course Arceus. We will do out best to help everyone and stop this guy once again." Ash said strongly as Pikachu nodded in agreement. They both bowed to Arceus before being sent back to their room on Lily of the Valley Island.

"Let's keep this quiet Pi. The last thing we want is for someone to be reporting on this guy and scare him away. I want to finish this." Ash said quietly after he and Pikachu were back in their spots on the bed.

"_I agree. Besides if he knows we know he might not attack us directly, but go for someone else, knowing we'd help. We don't want innocent people involved."_ Pikachu added, curling up again.

"Good point. Tomorrow you and me will get up extra early and see if we can find anything out of the ordinary. Then we'll have a reunion with the rest of our Pokemon. How's that sound, buddy?" Ash asked knowing Pikachu would be happy.

"_It sounds awesome. I missed those guys. I can't wait! Let's go to sleep now so we can see them sooner!" _Pikachu almost yelled, getting excited at seeing his old friends. He then dropped his head down and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to force himself to sleep.

Ash chuckled at his partner's actions. Pikachu could be like that sometimes, but he didn't care. They were best friends, through it all.

Ash smiled at Pikachu one last time, before closing his eyes too and letting sleep overcome him again, this time hopefully for the entire night.

As he felt his mind drifting away, he heard his last few thoughts of the day.

'Can we stop him before it's too late?' 'What if we can't? What if he hurts Ursula, or Sarah? NO! I can't let that happen. We will find him, and we will stop him.'

'Together." Ash muttered as he wrapped an arm around his wife, and got one last look at Sarah and his Pokemon, before finally falling into a well-deserved rest.

**STILL DON'T OWN ANYTHING! MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT MY FIRST 2 STORIES,**

'**A HERO'S RETURN' AND 'UNOVA: THE NEXT STOP' **

**SO IN THIS CHAPTER WAS MOSTLY FILLING YOU IN ON WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN THE TIME ASH AND PIKACHU LEFT, TO NOW. IT SHOWS HOW HE MET PAUL AGAIN AND HOW HE FOUND URSULA AGAIN. THE ONLY ONE NOT REVEALED SO FAR IS SARAH, BUT IF I CAN'T THINK OF A WAY TO PUT IT IN THE STORY, I'LL JUST LET YOU KNOW.**

**I WAS NEVER REALLY A BIG FAN OF ASH'S POKEMON LEAVING HIM EITHER, BUT I WANTED TO TRY SOMETHING NEW, BUT I COULDN'T DO IT. HIS POKEMON REALLY WOULDN'T TURN AWAY NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED.**

**YES, I DECIDED ONE LEGENDARY WAS GOOD ENOUGH AND WHO BETTER THAN EVERYONES FAVORITE CAT-LIKE-MUTANT-MONSTER-FRIENDLY-ANGRY AND DANGEROUS POKEMON?**

**WHO CAN GUESS WHAT MEWTWO WAS DOING IN JOHTO? ANYONE WHO GUESSES RIGHT FIRST WILLS GAURENTEE AN OC IN THE LEAGUE. HOW FAR HE/SHE WILL MAKE IT, I DON'T KNOW BUT THEY WILL BE THERE.**

**AS ALWAYS DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW, I WANT TO KNOW HOW I DID. NEXT UPDATE WILL BE FOR UNOVA: THE NEXT STOP CHAPTER 6. I DON'T KNOW WHEN BUT I HOPE WEDNESDAY OR THURSDAY.**


	3. Chapter 3: The Hunt and The Reunion

A CHAMPIONS RISE

CHAPTER THREE: THE HUNT AND THE REUNION

Ash woke up bright and early the next morning. He was the only one up when he woke up Pikachu because he was raring to go find the Poacher. Ash quietly got out of bed, careful not to wake up Ursula or Sarah, and made his way to the living room with Pikachu in tow. Ash quickly ate a bowl of cereal just as fast as Pikachu ate his Pokemon food and the duo made a hasty exit to the door, glad to have not woken anyone else.

"Remember buddy, it doesn't matter that we don't find him. We know he's here anyway, we're just making sure everybody's in one piece and still has their Pokemon." Ash whispered to Pikachu as he hopped onto his right shoulder.

Pikachu merely nodded, afraid to do much else at the prospect of waking anybody in his & Ash's room or anyone else's room up. It was only about 5am, just before sunrise. Nobody but them would wake up this early, and they only did it to make sure everything was safe. Back on the mountain they got up just after sunrise to train all day with Aipom and the other Pokemon, Ursula and Sarah slept until 9 or 10.

Come to think of it, Pikachu thought, not much has changed since the mountain. Sure they weren't in a wooden cabin, sure there were no chilling winds and sure there were no explosions from training but they were still together. They were still a family, a family that helps other people who can't help themselves. He remembered how he and Ash left the mountain almost every day to fly around the world and help. Between Ash and Paul, they stopped more trouble than Team Rocket caused.

Pikachu smiled at the memory before remembering that they weren't on the mountain or flying around on Charizard, but walking around Lily of the Valley Island looking for what very well could be the most dangerous person in the Region.

The Knight of Darkness. Even the name brought shivers to Pikachu's spine. Back in Johto in Ecruteak City, soon after they 'adopted' Sarah, they discovered a string of missing Pokemon believed to be stolen right off their trainers belts and property. They duo spent a week in the city just trying to figure out what happened until they finally saw something that changed all their ideas. They saw a shady man demolish a trainer, obviously a new one, in a battle and claimed the Totodile used in the battle as his prize. He took the Pokeball away from the trainer and said something along the lines of 'Don't tell anyone.' Before walking away like nothing ever happened.

Turns out this had happened in multiple other cities across Johto and Kanto. It took just under 2 weeks doing nothing but following, training and preparing but the duo of Ash & Pikachu proved to be too much for the guy. After a battle of witch Ash and Pikachu were victorious, the police stopped him before he could take any Pokemon from Ash. They swore that they would keep him in prison as long as he was alive.

Guess Not.

This guy was dangerous. After the arrest the only story on the news was about the infamous 'Knight of Darkness' and his capture. Of course they wanted to put the duo's names and give them rewards but Ash wouldn't allow it, so they just said that 'A mysterious duo of man and Pokemon with an unbreakable bond has done more good than they know by saving and returning these Pokemon'. Not the best report but considering they couldn't mention much else without revealing themselves it was pretty good. After taking him down they figured it'd be best to lie low so they left the region all together and went to Hoenn. The Dewford Islands provided the perfect escape from the public.

After arriving at the Dewford Islands by using Feraligatr they figured they'd never see the Knight again. Guess they were wrong.

Pikachu was shaken from his thoughts when Ash spoke.

"Well buddy, I haven't see him yet and we've been out here for an hour. Wanna just go meet the guys?" Ash asked, referring to his Pokemon.

"_Yea, I haven't heard anything either. Besides I miss the guys, it's been too long." _Pikachu said back.

"Alright, lets go to the park and we'll do it there. I think they'd all love to meet the new guys. Too bad Aipom, Houndoom and Lucario are still asleep." Ash said as he started walking to the park.

"_Well maybe they can be introduced later. Let's hurry up I'm suddenly sensing we're not alone here anyway." _Pikachu said, looking over his shoulder.

"I felt that too. Is it human or Pokemon?" Ash asked curiously, looking side-to-side.

"_I don't know but I do know it's coming closer. I can't tell what for though."_ Pikachu answered, his ears moving back and forth, trying to listen better.

Suddenly out of the bushes came a familiar purple figure that instantly ran up to Ash's free shoulder and rubbed her face against Ash's.

"Missed you too." Ash said to his Aipom while Pikachu snickered a little.

Suddenly out of nowhere a Hyper Beam was shot towards Ash and his Pokemon.

"Pi, ThunderBolt!" Ash responded quickly. Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and shot a bolt of crackling electricity to hold off the Hyper Beam.

After the smoke cleared Pikachu flipped back onto the shoulder opposite Aipom as the 3 glared at the figure that was coming from the bushes. What they saw was enough to almost immobilize them. Standing in the bushes was a giant Tyranitar and next to it was a man, Ash's height, with a black hoodie and sweatpants on and he was wearing a hood. The Knight of Darkness has returned.

"I see we meet again. What a coincidence." The Knight said sarcastically. Ash rolled his eyes.

"Right. Coincidence. What do you want?" Ash asked, getting annoyed. He said but one word.

"Revenge." Before vanishing using a smoke cloud as a cover. Ash sighed.

"Looks like we got more work to do. Let's go home and get everyone else." Ash said as he started walking back to his hotel room.

After he got back to his hotel room, he took his Pokeballs that were in his room along with Lucario and Houndoom and made his way back outside, except this time he went towards an empty in the woods around the stadium.

Ursula woke up at 9 am to find Sarah still sleeping peacefully and her husband gone along with Pikachu and the other Pokemon. She smiled at the thought that he was probably re-uniting with his Pokemon. She got out of bed and was met with the sight of Paul placing his, hers and Sarah's breakfasts on the kitchen table.

"Knew you'd wake up soon." Paul told her smartly as he sat down.

"Thanks for making breakfast. I could use a break." Ursula said as she too sat down.

"No problem. Cooking everyday for so long has to be entitled to a day off once in a while right?" Paul asked knowingly.

Ursula just smiled and nodded her head as she started to eat the food Paul made, witch was pretty good considering she didn't think Paul cooked at all.

Sarah emerged from the bedroom Ursula was not too long ago and wordlessly sat down with Ursula and Paul to eat her food. Not too long into the meal, however, an explosion was heard. Then another. And another followed. Sarah, Ursula and Paul were getting quite annoyed so they went outside and made their way over to the smoke that was streaming into the sky.

When they arrived they saw Ash standing there, a little dazed, with Infernape and Meganium on 2 sides of the battlefield in front of him having a practice match that was tilting in favor of Infernape. Although they all knew something wasn't right, they decided to forget about it and let the man have his happy reunion with all his friends after all these years. So Sarah, Ursula and Paul silently turned and walked back to the Pokemon Center to continue their breakfast.

Ash, who was aware of their presence the whole time, sighed a heavily relieved sigh.

"Okay, you can stop." Ash said as Infernape and Meganium collapsed against each other right after the words left his mouth.

"_Think they saw him Ash?" _Aipom asked as she jumped from a tree onto his left shoulder.

"I don't think so. They didn't say anything about it. I'm just glad they bought the 'practice battle' cover-up. If they knew The Knight was here they'd never fell 100% safe." Ash thought out loud.

Aipom smiled and jumped off his shoulder and ran to play with Pikachu. Ash smiled at his 2 only un-evolved Pokemon. They were like brother and sister to each other since they found Aipom abandoned somewhere in the Hoenn region. Those 2, along with Lucario and Houndoom, were some his most trust-worthy Pokemon and along with Charizard, Sceptile and Feraligatr some of the strongest. Although Pikachu could take anyone in a 1-vs-1 match, he couldn't take the elemental Trio together. But then again, even Legendries have fallen to these giants. Charizard had beaten the Legendary Birds 1-on-1, Sceptile had beaten the Legendary Golems 1-on-1 and Feraligatr had beaten the Legendary Kami Trio 1-on-1. However despite their size Pikachu and Aipom have accomplished quite a lot. Aipom had taken down Jirachi and Celebi separately and Pikachu hasn't been beaten in a 1-on-1 in forever, even against Legends.

Houndoom's senseless barking interrupted ash's thoughts. Ash turned to see what had the dog-like Pokemon so excited or aggregated. When he turned he saw something just as bad as The Knight of Darkness. He saw the very people who turned their back on him. He saw the very people who made him give up his life and live in hiding. He saw the VERY PEOPLE who killed his mother. He saw his old friends. Walking to him.

Trip was walking and talking with his friends as they headed to the woods to do some training. He was talking to Misty and Dawn, as Iris and Cilan had a separate conversation and Brock, May and Max lagged behind everyone else, having their own talk.

"Do you think he'll ever come back?" Max asked hopefully.

Even though no name was mentioned, May and Brock still knew all-to well who he was talking about. Ash. After they realized Ash wasn't bad luck and that Trip had turned them on their best friend, the 3 became almost inseparable as nobody else felt bad about turning on Ash. Every time the 3 were alone they'd discuss Ash. If they thought he was alive and okay, if they thought he'd come back and even if they'd see him. Most importantly if he would forgive them. That was what worried them the most.

"Maybe. Who knows, he might even be here." May said positively. She was trying to convince herself more than Max.

"I hope so. I miss him." Max said quietly.

Before the conversation could go any further, there was a loud and annoying barking sound coming from the left. They realized it was coming from the woods they were going to train in. They all turned and saw a man with a black cloak hanging off his shoulders and a hat hiding his hair. He was standing before a large variety of Pokemon but he didn't seem to be paying attention. He appeared to be deep in thought about something.

'Must be really important to not notice that barking'

That was the unanimous thought of Trip and the others as they walked closer and closer to the man, hoping to learn something about a possible opponent. This man also somehow reminded them of someone they once knew, but none of them could place from where.

The man must have finally noticed them because he now had all but 4 of his Pokemon returned to their Pokeballs. Now all that was left was a Pikachu and Aipom on his shoulders, a Lucario at his left side and Houndoom by his right. And they were all staring blankly towards them.

"Hello sir." Cilan spoke up as they came closer to the man.

"Hello." The man replied, quick and coldly.

"Now I remember you! You yelled at us before!" Dawn cried, remembering the night they yelled at Sarah and Ursula.

"Don't remember." He replied. He seemed to genuinely not remember and they bought it, not noticing the smirk Houndoom wore for his master.

"Are you competing?" Misty asked, changing the subject.

"Yes. How many of you are?" The man asked. This was the most they heard him speak since getting here.

"I am." Trip, Misty, and Max said simultaneously with their hands being pointed up a little for clarity.

Ash, still unknown to them, smirked. This was going to be more fun than he thought. Pikachu grinned just as much as Ash along with the other Pokemon at the thought of the confused looks on their faces when Ash's name was revealed in the finals of the tournament.

"So, you are the 3 who will have the pleasure of losing to me." Ash said in a confident tone. Pikachu, for added effect, stuck his tongue out at them.

The aforementioned people glared towards them, as if to say that they had no intentions of losing at all. 

"Well what's your name? I'd like to know who I'm going to beat." Trip said cockily. Ash just smirked.

"I go by many names these days, but you may call me Red." Ash said mysteriously. Pikachu could hardly hold back a chuckle at his partners 'code name'.

The traitors however, seemed to buy it as they merely bit him a goodbye and walked away towards the Pokemon Center. As they left earshot Ash turned to Aipom.

"You battle first tomorrow. Lucario if she falls or I say otherwise you'll get a battle tomorrow too. Houndoom I'll save you for later. Look at the bright side, you battle the stronger Pokemon." Ash ordered. Aipom cheered, Lucario nodded and Houndoom barked in approval. They all loved a good battle.

Pikachu smiled. He loved battling more than anyone, except maybe Charizard and Sceptile. Those power-hungry fool. They could never get enough training. He knew he'd get a really good battle in this tournament too, he could feel it. Everyone in his family knew almost no battle could be as tough and frightening as witnessing a battle between Charizard, Sceptile and himself. Feraligatr and Floatzel were close in power, so was Houndoom, but they weren't in the 'Top 3' as Sarah called it. It was her name for Ash's 3 most powerful Pokemon that consisted of the mighty fire dragon, the agile grass lizard and 'innocent' electric mouse. The 'Top 5' is what extended to Feraligatr and Houndoom.

Ash turned his head to see his partner deep in thought over something and chuckled a little. It was funny to him because Pikachu never really over thought things so it was a little funny to see it when it happened.

"Alright guys, lets go get some food then we can walk around until lunch and then train a little bit. Sound okay?" Ash asked, not expecting an actual answer though, he knew his Pokemon loved food, peaceful walks AND training.

Just as he expected they all smiled widely at him and assumed their usual spots. Pikachu hopped onto his right shoulder and Aipom jumped to his left while Lucario stood by Ash's left side and Houndoom by his right. After that the trainer started towards the Pokemon Center, falling into step with his 2 walking Pokemon. They left the wooded training area and made a left to go back to their room. On their walk Ash and Pikachu saw so many people they knew from their lives before.

There was Barry in a tag battle with Zoey against Burgundy and Morrison. They saw Tyson training Blaziken. They saw Lance flying on Dragonite. They saw The Knight demolishing Brock, May and Max with Tyranitar. They saw Gary Oak trying to flirt with a girl. He didn't see anything too unusual.

Wait, what? Ash did a double take to confirm his thoughts and was proved right when he saw the people he traveled through Hoenn with about to be destroyed by his worst enemy in an ally, of all places. Ash sighed. Couldn't the world give him a break?

"Houndoom, Dark Pulse!"

Ash called suddenly, and before the words even completely left his mouth, the dog-like Pokemon fired a dark orb attack that intercepted the Hyper Beam of the Pseudo Legendary, who looked pretty pissed. Brock, May and Max returned Swampert, Blaziken and Gallade respectively before hiding behind 'Red' as they knew him, as The Knight growled and Tyranitar glared.

"If you leave now 'Hero' you may have your Pokemon." The Knight said threateningly.

Brock, May and Max gasped at the threat but to their surprise Ash or 'Red' chuckled lightly and his Pokemon smirked.

(Authors Notice; I'll say 'Ash' but they don't know its Ash, they still think he's Red so unless someone else besides his Pokemon, Paul, Ursula and Sarah call him Red, I'll write Ash.)

"You and I both know, a little too well, that won't happen. Is this your idea of a trap or are you just trying to get me pissed to get a better shot at winning?" Ash asked, a little too cocky for Brock & the others comfort.

"Red, this guys no amateur." Brock warned, May and Max nodding fiercely, worry spread across all their faces.

"I assure you, neither am I." Ash said, in the same whisper as Brock.

Brock and the siblings gulped worriedly. If this guy couldn't walk-the-walk they'd all be done for. Although he did seem like he knew what he was doing, so they let it go for now as they waited to see what Red would do next. Although they couldn't put their fingers on it, but their was something familiar about this Red fellow.

"Pi, Lucario, Houndoom, Aipom use Escape Maneuver 4." Ash called seriously.

With a nod, they all jumped into action. Pikachu jumped in front of Tyranitar while he crackled with electricity that surrounded his entire body. Lucario put a blue bubble made of aura around Brock, May and Max. Houndoom, while never leaving Ash's side, gathered heat in his mouth and prepared for Ash's order to fire. Aipom stood by Pikachu's side with her tail glowing white, ready to slam into something at a moments notice.

Before anybody could do, say or question anything a white bolt of electricity came from the sky and headed to Pikachu. Before they could connect, Pikachu did a back flip and landed on Ash's shoulder. The lightening did a sharp turn and went into Aipom's glowing tail, although the monkey looked completely fine. Aipom quickly swung her tail into the ground and released the electricity as she too hopped back onto Ash. On Ash's nod Houndoom released a flamethrower at the exact spot Aipom struck the floor. On impact with the electricity the fire and static exploded violently, causing a huge crowd of smoke to appear clouding everyone's vision, but Ash's voice rang through the smoke, screaming but one word.

"Now!" and with that little word, Ash, Pikachu, Aipom, Houndoom, Lucario, Brock, May and Max found themselves vanishing into thin air. As the smoke cleared the only thing left in the ally was a confused Poacher, a pissed Tyranitar and confused bystanders. Refusing to go back to jail, the Knight hustled away with Tyranitar as fast as he could, but also avoiding suspicion. He knew, however, to be free he must get rid of the most troubling thorn in his side. Ash Ketchum and Pikachu.

I STILL DON'T OWN ANYTHING.

DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT 'A HERO'S RETURN' WITH ITS NEW ALTERNATE ENDING AND 'UNOVA: THE NEXT STOP' WITCH WILL BE UPDATED AFTER CHAPTER 4 FOR THIS STORY IS UP.

SO I KNOW YOU GUYS HAD QUESTIONS LIKE 'IF MAY FEELS BAD, WHY DID BLAZIKEN BURN ASH'S HOUSE?' WELL DON'T WORRY ALL WILL BE REVEALED IN TIME. AND NO I'LL TRY NOT TO MAKE IT STUPID LIKE 'UMM I FORGOT'

LIKE I SAID, CHAPTER 4 FOR THIS STORY WILL BE UPLOADED BEFORE THE NEXT CHAPTER OF MY OTHER UN-FINISHED STORY, THE REASON BEING I'M FAVORING THIS STORY A LITTLE MORE CONSIDERING I'VE BEEN WRITTEN A LOT ABOUT WRITING MORE 'BETRAYAL' ASH STORIES.

SPEAKING OF WITCH I HAVE OTHER IDEAS FOR BETRAYAL FICS AND PLAN ON MAKING MORE EVENTUALLY BUT NOT UNTIL AT LEAST THIS STORY OR MY ASH/GEORGIA STORY IS DONE. IM NOT SURE IF THEY'LL BE BETTER OR WORSE BUT I'LL GIVE IT A SHOT. IN CASE YOUR WONDERING YES ASH WILL HAVE SARAH IN ALL OF MY BETRAYAL FICS AND THE TEAM ROCKET TRIO WILL MOST LIKELY BE IN HIS FAMILY IN MOST OF THEM TOO.

THAT'S ABOUT IT FOR NOW. DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW AND DON'T FORGET ABOUT MY NEXT UPLOADS!


	4. Chapter 4: The Revelation

A CHAMPIONS RISE

CHAPTER FOUR: THE REVELATION

Brock, May and Max solidified again, but rather than the alleyway, they were standing on a rooftop of a building. They turned to see an already solidified Ash along with his 4 Pokemon. Suddenly the silence was broken.

"_Are you alright? I was worried I was too late."_ Said a psychic floating Pokemon known as Mewtwo. While Brock and the siblings were gaping, Ash smiled.

"Right on time, as always. Thank you my friend. How was Johto?" Ash asked his feline legendary.

"_My visit to Mt. Quena was good. The clones are really holding up by themselves. I'm just lucky Giovanni wasn't there this time." _Mewtwo explained.

Ash nodded and thanked his feline Pokemon, before calling him back to his Pokeball per Arceus' speech yesterday. Afterwards Ash turned to the people he rescued.

"I suppose you have questions." Ash said, a little annoyed at being stuck with the people who turned their backs on him rather than his family. Seemingly oblivious to his annoyance, they fired questions at him.

"What just happened?" May started.

"Was that Mewtwo?" Max continued.

"Most importantly, who was that guy?" Brock finished.

They were all itching with so many other questions, but settled with one each for now. Ash sighed heavily while his Pokemon rolled their eyes a little, before Ash answered.

"You were attacked for your Pokemon. Yes. The Knight of Darkness." Ash answered dully in order.

"I've heard of him. He was wanted for 3 months in Ecruteak City for illegal Pokemon Poaching and was finally defeated by some mysterious trainer who didn't want the credit. What's he doing here?" Max asked, full of worry.

"The one in the same. He's here for revenge against the one who caught him in the first place." Ash answered. He waited a little while before it sunk in that he was the one who caught him.

"Red? You were the one who caught that guy? Why didn't you take credit?" May asked curious.

"Yes, I was. I just don't like to draw too much attention to myself." Ash answered.

"What Pokemon did you use to beat him? We didn't stand a chance! Did you use your Charizard? Salamence? Flygon?" Max questioned eagerly.

"None of the above. I used my number 1. My old buddy Pi here really showed him what's what." Ash answered proudly as he scratched Pikachu's head.

Brock, May and Max looked down in shame. Seeing the man with the Pikachu that shared a close bond reminded them of their mistakes. It was almost like the universe wouldn't let them forget. Suddenly a flash of familiarity came across them as they watched the man not only scratch and praise the Pikachu, but also carry a conversation with it. That was something Ash and only Ash could so easily.

"What's your name?" Brock asked suddenly, breaking Ash and Pikachu from their memories at Ecruteak.

"Red." Ash lied.

"Your real name." Brock corrected. When Ash raised an eyebrow at him, he continued. "Obviously 'Red' is some sort of code-name. I want to know your real name." Brock specified.

Sensing they were on to him, he covered for himself.

"It's a code name for a reason Mr. I don't believe I know your names, actually." Ash lied again.

After giving their names, Brock, May and Max went on to name the people Ash saw them with earlier, seemingly knowing they'd meet again.

"Ah. Well then Mr. Brock, it's a code-name for a reason." Ash repeated, but instead named Brock.

Brock nodded, showing he understood and was at least a little sorry for trying to pry into this mans personal business. He couldn't help but feel disappointed that he wasn't any closer to figuring out why this 'Red' fellow reminded him of Ash. He could tell Max and May was having similar feelings.

"Sorry Red, but you reminded us of someone we used to know very well." Brock told him honestly, hoping to at lease come a little closer to finding his best friend.

"Who might that be?" Ash asked, although he already knew the answer. He could see Pikachu holding back laughter and Aipom, Lucario and Houndoom holding back attacks for the Trio.

"Ash. Ash Ketchum." Brock answered after a little hesitation while May and Max visibly looked down at the mention of his name.

"You said 'used to know'. May I ask what happened?" Ash asked, trying to hide the irritation in his voice.

After seemingly thinking it over, Brock nodded.

"We let someone turn us against him. Not only that but when it didn't work… he made us get rid of him." Brock said solemnly.

"But now we feel bad. After he was gone we realized that he wasn't bad luck like we were told. You wouldn't have happened to see him somewhere have you? According to legends he's still alive." May added, speaking for the first time.

Ash and Pikachu zoned out and entered a conversation through telepathy that can only be achieved with a Pokemon and human partner that work so well together they could be considered 1.

"_Do you think you should tell them who we are?" Pikachu asked Ash. _

"_I don't know Pi. They seem genuinely sorry, upset and I can tell they just want things be right again. On the other hand the others might find out and I think it's too soon for that." Ash debated. _

"_But on the other other hand if we just ask them not to tell maybe it'll work out. I am still mad though." Pikachu said, voicing his opinion. _

"_Me too Pi, but it's not like we were planning revenge so we either aren't upset because they feel bad for real, or we are stupid for not planning a revenge." Ash said. _

"_I say let's do it? Besides what have we got to lose? The Knight is already after them anyway. Next he'll probably go for the camera jerk and his 'faithful servants' next. At least if they know they can try and keep the others out of trouble. As pissed as we are we can't let anyone, even THEM, get hurt." Pikachu spoke honestly. _

"_I guess you're right again buddy. You win, we tell. Besides it's not in our nature to let anyone get hurt." Ash agreed, before he and Pikachu closed their mental barriers, breaking the telepathic chat and bringing them back to the real world._

"What would you say if I told you I could tell you information about 'Ash'" Ash said suddenly, surprising his Pokemon that weren't Pikachu.

They weren't too shocked though, they too sensed these 3 were full of sorrow and regret and trusted their masters' judgment. If he said it was okay to tell them, it was okay with them.

Now the 3 looked interested, but it was Brock who spoke up.

"I think I speak for all of us when I say 'We're listening'." Brock said cleverly, earing a grin from the Hoenn siblings and a smirk from Ash and his Pokemon.

"Listen carefully." Ash whispered. The 3 nodded and leaned in closer to hear well. Aipom jumped to Lucario's shoulder and Lucario and Houndoom backed up little by little.

"He's back." Ash whispered even lowed as his cloak fell from his shoulders. After the cloak fell it became easy to tell just what happened. He looked almost exactly the same accept more muscular, older and his facial features were more defined. To top it off he even had Pikachu on his right shoulder.

Without warning he was pulled into a huge hug by the 3, hearing nothing but 'I'm so glad your okay!' 'Thank God your back!' and "What happened?' repeated over and over again. The duo just smiled at their friends, now re-united.

After Ash was freed, somewhat, from his friends, he and Pikachu stepped back and let his Pokemon fall into position. Aipom jumped back onto his left shoulder and Houndoom and Lucario by his right and left sides respectively.

"I'll give you the short version of my journeys for now. Later you, my family and I will meet you and explain everything." They nodded eagerly. "I escaped, took a select few Pokemon and ran away forever. On my travels I took in a legal sister but emotionally she's my daughter, I married to Ursula and Paul is my best HUMAN friend. That's the run-down of it. Find me later if you want to talk, I'm in room 64 at the center." Ash explained quickly.

Before he could leave, Max spoke up.

"Wait! What's so important you're leaving right now?" Max asked curiously.

"I have to find The Knight of Darkness. I have a feeling he isn't in his 'innocent stage' yet. I promise I'll explain later. Tell you what? Lunch together. You, me and my family and all the questions you want. How does 12 sound?" Ash asked, getting excited to leave.

"Uh sure. I guess. Let me guess, don't tell the others about this lunch or who you are?" May asked knowingly.

Ash smiled at her and nodded rapidly.

"Pi, Escape Maneuver 2." Ash ordered calmly.

Pikachu nodded and jumped off Ash's shoulder with a flip. While spinning his tail changed to a metallic steel color and was holding an ElectroBall at the end. Suddenly the ElectroBall was shot right at the floor and created smoke from the power behind it that came from the Iron Tail. When the smoke vanished Ash and his Pokemon were gone, leaving only Brock, May and Max on the rooftop.

"What has be been doing?" May asked, impressed.

"How long did that take him to learn?" Brock asked dumbfounded.

"Why is he obsessed with cool exits?!" Max asked excitedly.

Suddenly there was an explosion in the distance, right by the woods they walked past earlier. No doubt Ash and Pikachu fighting that Knight guy. Thought the 3 trainers.

"We'll see them in a hour. It's already 11 o'clock. We have to go find Misty and the others and tell them we can't have lunch with them." Brock said, breaking everyone away from the smoke in the distance.

"How can we tell them that without telling about Ash?" May asked.

"Tell them we're having lunch with Morrison. We're the only ones who know him so they'll buy that." Max said smartly. May and Brock smiled at his idea and silently agreed to it.

Brock led May and Max off the rooftop silently as they contemplated on what they were going to hassle Ash about. They were definitely asking about his 'family' and The Knight of Darkness. Max was thinking about asking about his 'Escape Maneuvers' while Brock was thinking more on how he got his Pokemon looking so good and well trained and not to mention how powerful. May, however, was thinking about asking on advice for combinations. After she saw his ElectroBall/Iron Tail combination she couldn't help but think about the other combinations he must have.

Although confused on their questions and Ash and Pikachu's history, they could all agree on at least 1 thought. They were all relieved Ash and Pikachu were alive, healthy, powerful and most of all back. They all grinned at that thought as they walked back to the Pokemon Center to cancel on lunch with Trip and wait for lunch with Ash and Pikachu.

Meanwhile at the Center Ash's family was getting worried. He was taking a little longer than usual and they were guessing it had something to do with how dazed he seemed earlier in the woods.

"I'll go check and see if I can find him." Ursula said as she stood up. Paul shook his head.

"He's stronger than anyone I know, he can handle himself. Besides he's probably ran into them by now. I wish I could've been there with him." Paul said as he watched Ursula sink back down.

"Do any of them regret it?" Ursula asked. Paul nodded.

"I know for a fact Brock, May and Max do. I've seen it. Whenever I see them together, those 3 are always huddled around close to each other and a further away from anyone else." Paul said knowingly.

"Do you think Ash knows that? Think he'll forgive them?" Sarah asked curiously.

"Probably those 3 because they honestly regret it, but the others I don't think so." Paul answered, once again in an 'I know it all' tone.

"But he's not trying to get revenge on them so he can't be that mad right?" Sarah asked again.

"That's just because he's smart enough to know revenge does nothing but create more problems. Just because he isn't seeking revenge, doesn't mean he isn't mad. Like I said, he's probably already forgiven Brock, May and Max if he's seen them." Paul answered again.

Sarah and Ursula just nodded in agreement with his words. Although they were all still worried for Ash, they decided that Paul was right and that Ash could take care of himself.

LINEBREAK

In the woods there was an intense battle going on between The Knight and Ash.

"Arcanine, Flamewheel!" The Knight ordered. At his command the Arcanine ran at a fast pace while being covered in flames that circled around.

"Counter with Aqua Jet, Floatzel!" Ash countered. After his Floatzel jumped into the air and turned into a speeding bullet surrounded in water.

The water and fire attacks collided almost center field, and both Pokemon pushed as hard as they could but the other wouldn't budge. It seemed like they were at an impasse, but suddenly they were both forced apart at the same time. Floatzel was flung back to Ash, but he skidded to a stop. Arcanine was thrown to The Knight, but he flipped over in the air and landed on all fours. Both powerful Pokemon stood glaring at each other for a period of time before another attack was called.

"Flamethrower! / Water Gun!" They ordered at the same time.

Simultaneously streams of fire and water were shot from Arcanine and Floatzel but again they collided, fought to overpower the other, and exploded. Without even waiting for commands, the Pokemon struck with more attacks. Arcanine jumped with glowing claws, going for a scratch attack. However Floatzel was ready and swung his tail back and forth for a Sonic Boom that minimized the damage.

Again both Pokemon were forced back and again they both landed, growling and glaring at the other. Until finally, Arcanine and Floatzel both collapsed, unable to take anymore attacks. The Knight just returned Arcanine and ran as fast as he could.

Ash, knowing he couldn't catch up now, sighed as Floatzel was returned with words of praise before he turned to his 4 walking Pokemon.

"Let's go tell Ursula and the others out lunch plans, shall we?" Ash asked. Knowing it wasn't really a question; the Pokemon resumed their usual spots as they headed to the Pokemon Center.

Ash and his Pokemon made it to their room and when they opened the door they saw Paul, Sarah and Ursula watching T.V.

"Hey guys." Ash said casually. They all nodded to show they acknowledged his presence but then realized how long he was gone and decided to question him.

"Where have you been?" Ursula asked.

"What happened?" Sarah continued.

"Did you see them yet?" Paul questioned.

Ash just sighed. He knew this was coming eventually. As of right now he couldn't bring them to lunch without them finding out about The Knight of Darkness. He knew they had a right to know from him not from anyone else, even though he did forgive them, it was still his place to tell them, not Brock and the others.

After thinking it over in his head and with Pikachu, Ash gave a sigh and explained everything. He told them about The Arceus, The Knight, the rescue, the lunch and anything else important.

They took it better than he expected and had little to no problems eating with the people who once betrayed him, as if they knew just from his story they were truly sorry. They took The Knight of Darkness' return harder witch is understandable but they still looked more afraid than angry, but neither was good news to Ash and Pikachu. The duo had a plan worked out that they would each keep a Pokemon out with them whenever they weren't with Ash and if The Knight showed up, they shot an attack into the air.

By the time he had told them everything, they accepted it, they talked it over and came up with the plan, it was about 10 of 12, almost time for lunch with Brock and the others. Ash sighed and he and his family got ready and were out of their room in 5 minutes and met Brock, May and Max in the cafeteria of the Pokemon Center.

Ash sat across from Brock, while Ursula and Paul sat on the left and right of him. Sarah sat next to Ursula and Pikachu and Aipom hopped onto the table. Houndoom and Lucario sat at the end of the table waiting for food.

"Questions?" Ash started.

After that the entire lunch was a blur. He was bombarded with so many questions he could hardly think straight enough to answer them all.

He couldn't even remember all the questions there were so many. Among the ones he remembered were 'How are you so strong?' 'How do you train your Pokemon?' 'Did you get any new Pokemon?' 'Where do you think of those combinations?' 'Why do you use Escape Maneuvers?' and 'Where the hell have you been?'

Ash had decided to leave with his Pokemon to prepare for the first rounds tomorrow. He left his family to talk with the others. When he left Paul and Brock was exchanging training routines, Max was asking Sarah what Pokemon she had and Ursula and May were discussing a 'girls day out'. He was glad his family and his friends were getting along so well.

Ash walked a little further from the center and back to the wooded area that was a few blocks from where he was staying. He found the place he was at earlier, the small clearing in the area surrounded by trees, and he let out his 'Power Team' as Sarah had addressed them.

Out came Charizard, Sceptile, Feraligatr, Krookodile and Swellow. Pikachu was the 6th member of this 'Power Team' but he was already out. These Pokemon were put together with the 'Power Team' name because of their strength and abilities in battle. While Houndoom and Floatzel were 'stronger' than Krookodile and Swellow, it wouldn't be wise to have 2 fire and water types should someone have an easy counter.

"Im warning you a lot of you won't battle until later rounds, but when you do I'll do my best to allow you a lot of glory." Ash started and was met with mixed expressions.

The powerful elemental trio grumbled at not fighting for a while, Krookodile seemed okay with Ash's choice, Swellow was trying to be unfazed like Krookodile, but anyone could tell he was just as upset as Charizard. Unlike the others, Pikachu seemed to be sulking rather than launching ThunderBolt's.

"What's wrong buddy?" Ash asked, even though he knew exactly what was wrong.

"_I just know I'm going to get an awesome battle in this tournament, but I can't wait to fight in it!"_ Pikachu complained.

Ash sighed. He could feel the battle up ahead too. He and Pikachu almost had a 6th sense when it came to battling and could tell who was a worthy opponent. They both knew someone more than worthy was on the island now. It wasn't Paul because this didn't make him feel like he did before they fought. It wasn't The Knight because he was more frightening than worthy. But who was it then?

"Think of it this way. I'll let you battle against anyone who we both think is strong enough so you're not tired from fighting the one's who aren't." Ash reassured him, desperate to make his best friend feel better.

Pikachu nodded excitedly, happy with Ash's battle plan.

"Okay guys, we should train for a little while. Charizard, Swellow fly to Mt. Coronet and back to work on stamina and speed. Krookodile practice Outrage some more. Sceptile you spar with Feraligatr and Pikachu work some more on LightScreen." Ash commanded.

With a ready nod, they jumped into action. Charizard and Swellow took off at top speed towards the Mt., Krookodile went a safe distance and practiced the dragon-attack, Sceptile and Feraligatr took battle stances while Pikachu called electric energy and formed a box around him. Ash smiled. This was going to be fun.

**AND CHAPTER 4 IS DONE! **

**NEXT I WILL UPLOAD CHAPTER 7 FOR 'UNOVA: THE NEXT STOP' SO YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT A LITTLE LONGER FOR THAT. ALSO IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY, CHECK OUT MY STORY 'A HERO'S RETURN' **

**I'M THINKING OF IDEAS FOR OTHER STORIES THAT AREN'T POKEMON. ****GASP!**** I KNOW BUT AS MUCH AS I LOVE POKEMON, I DO WATCH OTHER THINGS. SO FAR I HAVE SEVERAL IDEAS FOR SOME 'DANNY PHANTOM' STORIES BUT SORRY TO GET YOUR HOPES UP BECAUSE I'M GOING TO FINISH THESE 2 FIRST. **

**BUT STILL LET ME KNOW IF YOU LIKE THE IDEA DANNY PHANTOM STORIES AND I'LL PUT MORE TIME INTO THINKING OF IT. I'VE READ SOME AND I LIKE THE ONES WHERE HE'S IN THE GHOST ZONE WITH HIS CLASS SO I MIGHT DO SOMETHING WITH THAT. **

**THAT'S IT FOR NOW UNTIL I UPDATE AGAIN! DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW**


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